People v. The Commissioners is a landmark Supreme Court case that established the principle of judicial review. The case involved a dispute between the state of New York and the city of New York over the city's right to tax certain property. The state argued that the city had no authority to tax the property, while the city argued that it had the right to do so. The Supreme Court ultimately sided with the city, ruling that the city had the right to tax the property. This ruling established the principle of judicial review, which holds that the Supreme Court has the power to review the constitutionality of laws passed by the states. This ruling has been cited in numerous cases since then, and has been a cornerstone of the American legal system.

In People v. The Commissioners, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a state law that allowed for the sale of public lands in order to fund railroad construction was constitutional. Justice Field wrote a dissenting opinion arguing that while Congress had authority over interstate commerce and could grant charters for railroads, it did not have the power to delegate its authority over land sales or other matters related thereto. He argued that such an act would be unconstitutional as it would violate both the Tenth Amendment's reservation of powers to states and Article I Section 8's limitation on congressional powers. Furthermore, he argued that allowing Congress this type of control would lead to further encroachments upon state sovereignty by federal government which should be avoided at all costs.